Trujillo out, Maynard steps in to face Pearson on Aug. 16 at Fight Night 47

If you had put Gray Maynard and Ross Pearson together for a fight back in 2010, especially on a free card, it surely would have drummed up some interest.

Four years later, with deeper divisions and with both fighters having fallen on harder times, it's kind of just another fight.

But it's a fight we'll get on Aug. 16 at UFC Fight Night 47, as Abel Trujillo has pulled out of a scheduled bout with Pearson, and Maynard has been pulled from his fight with Fabricio Camoes in order to fill in.

Once 10-0, Maynard earned a split-decision draw against Frankie Edgar at UFC 125, and it's been largely downhill from there. He lost a subsequent rematch with Edgar, rebounded against Clay Guida, but then dropped both of his 2013 fights and hasn't fought now in over half a year. His 11-3 record remains strong, but he's in danger of dropping from the lightweight division's top-15 with a third consecutive loss.

Pearson's career has been far more up-and-down, beginning with a 1-2 start but eventually building to 8-3 to earn a shot on The Ultimate Fighter season nine. He's 7-4 in the UFC but has failed to build any momentum, keeping him off of pay per view events since Dec. 2011. He's coming off a no contest against Melvin Guillard and a decision loss to Diego Sanchez, dropping him to 15-7 (1) as a pro.

Given their trajectories, this fight is fairly low-stakes, but that doesn't mean it won't be entertaining. Maynard can go for days, and Pearson has produced a mix of knockouts, submissions and decision victories in his career. Failing that, just pretend you're back in 2010.